NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Five games into the season, Brian Campbell was on the verge of being a healthy scratch in Columbus, potentially ending his iron-man streak. He spent two straight practices outside of the top six, and appeared destined for the press box.
Instead, Joel Quenneville pulled a swerve at the last minute, and dressed seven defensemen against the Blue Jackets, including Campbell.
But Campbell wasn’t able to talk his way back into the lineup this time. Campbell was a healthy scratch Thursday night, ending his streak of 423 consecutive regular-season games played. He last missed a game in March of 2011, also with the Hawks and also under Quenneville.
Gustav Forsling also was a scratch, as Michal Kempny and Michal Rozsival returned to the lineup after spending most of the month watching.
“We have eight ‘D’, making some tough decisions along the way,” Quenneville said. “Our last game, the defense wasn’t great. With eight defensemen, we always have tough decisions and we have to sit out two at a time. The guys who were out [Kempny and Rozsival] were probably out a little too long. He’s part of a group that, with 82 games, might not be able to play them all.”
The 37-year-old Campbell has three goals and seven assists in 37 games. He had been playing on the second pairing with Brent Seabrook, but found himself on the third pairing once Quenneville shuffled the blue line midway through Tuesday’s loss to the Winnipeg Jets.
“He started all right, then he played very well, [but the] stretch recently wasn’t as good,” Quenneville said.
Roster report
Andrew Desjardins was a healthy scratch for the first time since Nov. 29. Marian Hossa (upper body) missed his third straight game and isn’t expected to play Friday against Carolina, either. Nashville’s star defenseman P.K. Subban — who entered the final week of fan voting for the Central Division captaincy at the All-Star game ahead of Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews — missed his sixth straight game with an upper-body injury.
Email: mlazerus@suntimes.com
Twitter: @marklazerus
